Day 604: No unguarded place - Ephesians 6 vs 10 - 13

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.  11-12 Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil  in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Ephesians 6:10-13 (English Standard Version)

What would you say the apostle Paul's words in today's reading tell us Christians should expect as they go about living in this current world?

We certainly shouldn't be expecting a life of ease. He speaks of 'wrestling', and of having to 'withstand' attacks. Chapter 4 had started with Paul urging those who had come to faith in Jesus Christ to 'walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which they had been called, with all humility and gentleness.' That in itself would make Christians vulnerable in a world where selfishness and greed abound. But in vs 11-12 of this chapter he warns them of an even greater enemy. How should we understand those verses?

For modern 21st century men and women in the Western world, any talk of “spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” may seem crazy. People living in Africa and Asia, even South America, probably have a better idea of what he was saying. People behaving in a bizarre ways that indicate demonic possession are more common in those regions. But Paul isn't talking merely about demonic possession. He speaks of the 'schemes' of the devil. That suggests an agenda and plans. It implies that the flesh and blood people who seek to harm Christians are being influenced by powers that are invisible to us.

Take for example the man named Judas. He was one of the original disciples of Christ and, on the outside, didn't look threatening. But in Luke's gospel we read: “Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve. He went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers how he might betray Jesus to them. They were glad, and agreed to give him money. So he consented and sought an opportunity to betray Him to them in the absence of a crowd.” (Luke 22:3-5) Judas acted freely and according to his desires – but Satan influenced his life in a big way. I suspect that was true of many of the Emperors of Rome who were cruelly hostile towards Christians. It may have been true also of Hitler and his hatred towards Jews.

Christians therefore face a frightening scenario. Not only will there be people who hate them enough to want to harm them, but there will be unseen forces of evil inspiring and influencing these people to serve Satan's purposes. In Chapter 2 of this letter Paul had already spoken of Satan as “the prince of the power of the air - the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience.” So how are Christians to face this frightening scenario? (vs 10)

We are to find our strength in the Lord. He is able to give us victory in the battle that lies ahead of us. He has provided the spiritual armour we need to be able to stand firm against all that Satan and his unseen forces attack us with. God willing we will look at that in the next post from Ephesians. But what is an important thing about this armour that God provides? (vs 13)

We need the whole armour. Soldiers need to protect their head as well as the rest of their body. Having a shield but no helmet may not be enough to save them. An old hymn says: “Leave no unguarded place, no weakness of the soul; take every virtue, every grace, and fortify the whole.” But what if we don't feel like we are in a battle. If that's so we may need to ask ourselves whether we are walking in a way worthy of being a Christian. Is my life different from the world? Do I love God's righteousness? Is there anything I'm involved in which gives Satan an open door to harm my witness? May the Lord make us strong to live boldly for Christ in a world that's so influenced by the devil.